Note: This was last updated June, 2018 after our most recent flight with Spirit.

If you search for airline reviews online you’ll find no shortage of bad experiences, unresolved complaints, and stories that are just downright absurd. Of course this is no big surprise. When everything goes as planned, we usually don’t take the time to tell people about it. But when an airline experience goes poorly, we want to let the entire world know just how bad it was. I think it’s our way of speeding up the karma process.

But this isn’t one of those complaint stories. This is the opposite.

Our Spirit Airlines Experience Has Been Great

We’ve flown the whole family on Spirit Airlines on two big trips now – once round-trip from Baltimore to St. Thomas (via Ft. Lauderdale, so 4 flights) and once round trip from Baltimore to Orlando (Kim flew separate on one leg, so 3 flights). I’ve also flown them alone twice round-trip from Baltimore to Myrtle Beach. And B and I flew them round trip to Las Vegas just this week.

Every single experience we’ve had on Spirit has been great. That’s right. G-R-E-A-T great. On 14 individual flights so far, Spirit has:

  • Been on time, every time.
  • Had courteous in-flight staff.
  • Gone off with absolutely no problems at the airport or in-flight.
  • Been the cheapest option we could find for the trip.

Spirit Is A No-Frills Get-You-Where-You’re-Going Airline

Now, Spirit may not be for everyone. Spirit is a budget airline. They take the idea of “a la carte” to a whole new level.

When you book a ticket on Spirit, you are literally paying only for you and a “personal item” that can fit under the seat in front of you. That’s it.

  • Want a specific seat on the plane? That’ll be more money.
  • Want to check-in at a desk with a real person? More money. 
  • Need to bring a carry-on? More money. 
  • Have a checked back? More money. 
  • Checked bag overweight? More money. 
  • Want in-flight snacks and drinks? More money. 
  • Gotta check email on-board? More money. 
  • Want to use the bathroom on board? Okay that’s actually included. But just barely.

You’re getting the idea right? The way Spirit keeps their fares SUPER ULTRA CHEAP is by charging you for every extra frill, even things that other budget airlines sometimes provide.

But you know what? Most of the time you don’t need all those frills to get where you’re going.

Kim Holding All of Our Passports and Tickets for Our St. Thomas Trip!

Spirit’s Approach Means Our Big Family Can Fly Cheap

The reality is that with a big family, you’re going to be buying A LOT of plane tickets to go somewhere. Every time I see a plane fare I’m immediately multiplying that number by seven in my mind. Every travel dollar matters in this situation because every dollar is actually seven dollars for us. Here’s how we make Spirit work for us:

  • We book flights on “non-peak” days. We often vacation Wednesday-to-Wednesday because flights are literally 30-60% cheaper on weekdays.
  • We buy one checked bag for the whole family. Spirit’s limit is 40lbs for checked bags, so we have to be careful with weight. But here’s a trick we’ve learned: there’s NO weight limit to the personal item you bring with you–only a size limit. So, before we leave, we distribute all the heavy stuff we’re taking with us into everyone’s personal item bags, and then we pack the 40 lb. checked bag with everything else, making sure we are right at or under the 40 lb. limit.
  • If we’re going on short trips we don’t bother with a checked bag at all.
  • We pack a few small snacks and a water bottle for the kids for the flight. Granola bars are tasty, small, lightweight, and easy to pack.
  • Each kid brings a video game or book to keep them busy on the flight.

We Don’t Travel for the Experience of Flying

We fly to get to places. The difference between a budget airline coach seat and first class seat is, in reality, negligible.  After all, the entire plane takes off and lands at the same time, regardless of where you’re seated or whether you brought your own snacks and entertainment.

Boarding Our Spirit Flight from St. Thomas Back to Ft. Lauderdale

If you’re thinking about Spirit Airlines, we’d encourage you to give them a try. If you’ve had a good or bad experience, we’d love to hear about it in the comments.

P.S. Spirit didn’t provide us any compensation for this review and we paid full retail for all of our tickets.